Khris Davis homers again, but A's fall to Yankees in extras

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NEW YORK — The A’s looked like they were going to make it two in a row against the Yankees, but their inability to score late in the game with runners in scoring position eventually caught up.

After a couple of blown opportunities to take the lead late in the previous three innings, Chris Hatcher surrendered a first-pitch fastball to Neil Walker that was poked out to center field to bring home Gary Sanchez to give the Yankees a 7-6 walk-off win over the A’s in 11 innings.

The A’s appeared to take the lead in the ninth inning against Yankees flame throwing closer Aroldis Chapman.

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Chapman began the inning by walking the first three batters he faced to load the bases with no outs. After Mark Canha struck out, Jonathan Lucroy, who was pinch hitting for Bruce Maxwell, hit a fly out to left that brought home Matt Olson for the go-ahead run.

The Yankees (27-12) challenged the close play at the plate, and after getting a long look from the umpires, it was determined Gary Sanchez just barely was able to swipe a tag on Olson before he touched home plate. Lucroy’s sacrifice fly turned into a double play, and the game remained tied at 6-6 as the A’s failed to bring home a run after loading the bases with no outs.

“We’re on the wrong side of that every single time it seems like,” A’s manager Bob Melvin said. “The call was out. They said they saw some sort of touch there. Not much we can do about it.”

Sensing the swipe tag attempt coming, Olson tried to arch his back in order to evade the tag. Olson said he did not feel a touch from Sanchez as he crossed the plate, but knew it was going to be a close call after watching the replay on the big screen.

“They’re professionals looking at it and I trust that I did get tagged,” Olson said. “I didn’t get to see the extra slow-mo, it was hard to tell on the replay I saw. If he got anything, it was just barely any jersey.”

Though the A’s (19-20) finished 2 for 11 with runners in scoring position and left 13 runners on base, starter Andrew Triggs took full responsibility for the loss.

Triggs struggled with his command, getting touched up for six runs on six hits, including three home runs, with four walks and six strikeouts as he lasted just 4 1/3 innings.

Things really began to unravel for Triggs in the fifth. He surrendered a two-run homer to Aaron Judge to cut the A’s lead to 6-4, and was pulled soon after walking Sanchez. The Yankees brought in two more runs in the inning against Danny Coulombe and Ryan Dull, but those runs were also charged to Triggs.

Not only did Triggs fail to preserve the early lead provided to him by the offense, his short outing also made it a long night for the bullpen, which kept the Yankees off the scoreboard up until Walkers walk-off single in the 11th.

“This one’s on me,” Triggs said. “These guys worked their butts off to stake me four runs going into that fifth and then I gave them all right back. That shouldn’t have happened and it shouldn’t have gone as long as it did. I should have slammed the door. I didn’t do my job.”

When a game is close, Khris Davis continued to show why he’s the guy the A’s want to have up at the plate.

After Marcus Semien and Matt Joyce reached base to lead off the fourth, Davis crushed a 1-1 changeup from Domingo German over the wall in left for a three-run home run, his second game in a row with a homer, to put the A’s ahead 3-2. It was Davis’ 11th home run of the season, and his eighth of the go-ahead variety, which leads the majors. His 96 home runs since the start of the 2016 season are the most in the majors over that time.

Davis’ homer was part of a five-run inning that also saw Canha bring home two runs on a single that he was thrown out on trying to stretch into a double, which ended the inning with the A’s ahead 5-2.

“Most of our damage came early,” Melvin said. “When you get later on in the game like that, you feel like one hit is going to win it. They ended up getting the big hit.”

GRAVEMAN FEELING BETTER

Melvin was worried about Kendall Graveman’s shin Friday night, which stiffened up during a 10-5 victory. Though the right-hander was still limping around a bit in the clubhouse Saturday morning, Melvin was actually surprised at how much better Graveman was feeling.

“He’s all right. He’s a pretty tough guy,” Melvin said. “To get six out of him was great.”

Graveman’s day to throw a side session would be Sunday, but Melvin was still unsure of he would be able to throw or hold off for a couple of days.

BUCHTER AND BLACKBURN PROGRESSING

Ryan Buchter is still not back to basball activities, but Melvin said the left-hander could begin a throwing program as early as next week. Buchter was 1-0 with a 1.69 ERA in 13 appearances before going on the 10-day disabled list with a strained left shoulder.

Paul Blackburn, currently on the 60-day disabled list with a forearm strain sustained near the end of spring training, will throw a live bullpen session with Single-A Stockon on May 21.